With only weeks remaining for this year’s legislative session, the work is winding down. Only one Veterans-related bill was heard in a committee last week.

Rep. Bjorn Olson’s HF 3532 was heard in the House Ways and Means committee. This bill would allow National Guard members who don’t qualify as a Veteran the chance to be buried in a State Veterans Cemetery. The committee approved the bill and sent it to the House floor.

The House is expected to take up five Veterans-related bills for a full floor vote on Monday, May 4.

The bills are as follows:

• HF 3522 (Duran) Allows MDVA to temporarily close Veterans Homes in the unlikely event that a facility receives an involuntary termination notice from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) or other federal reviewers.
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• HF 3532 (Olson) Modifies eligibility in State Veterans Cemeteries to allow National Guard members, their spouses and dependent children to be buried.
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• HF 3584 (Bliss) Creates standards for legislatively directed competitive and direct grants issued by MDVA.
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• HF 3919 (Cha) Enacts the recommendations made by the Veterans of the Special Guerrilla Units and Irregular Forces in Laos Task Force.
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• HF 4492 (Bliss) Establishes the Minnesota Commanders’ Task Force into state statute.

The Senate still needs to act on companions to HFs 3522, 3584 and 4492, which could happen this week.